Trout & Me (and the carpet, the fence, the car, toys, $, $, $…)
January 13th, 2009, 2:22 pm · 11 Comments · posted by ewingert
It seemed from the moment my beloved, albeit barky, Jack Russell Terrier, took his last breath the begging started for a new dog. J.T. wasn’t begging. It was my husband, Stephan. Ace died two summers ago while I was in Texas visiting family. Soon e mails began to arrive with photos of Labrador Retriever puppies.
I was not gung-ho to get a new dog, let alone a breed notorious for non-stop chewing for the first couple of years. We still had our sweet desert rescued mix, Dolly. Wasn’t that enough for a while? But Stephan wouldn’t be swayed, “I’ve always wanted a big dog.” Now, I stay at home, so who do you think was going to truly be taking care of this new dog? Exactly. But, because I love him, I finally agreed.
Trout was from an “oops litter”. His mom & dad weren’t scheduled to hook-up, so to speak. As long as we promised not to breed him, he was only $100. For his argument, Stephan really pushed this tidbit, “He’s a pure bred Lab for only one hundred dollars, we can’t pass this up!” That excited utterance haunts him to this day. Me too.
We brought Trout home at 3 months old. Two months later he had to have double elbow surgery. In Orange County. By the leading dog elbow specialist in the country. Back at home, for 60 days he had to be crated, only let out by leash to potty. Medications administered. Follow-up appointments. And yes, I did the bulk of the care taking. I bonded with the little bugger during that time. Go figure.
His medical care costs aside, Stephan’s bargain dog has rung up quite the tab:
- Chain Link Fence Repair, three times - Accent Fence Co. is on speed dial
- Carpet shredded in my car
- Carpet damaged in the house
- One lawnmower, seriously
- BBQ grill knobs & grill cover
- One scooter - ate the tires
- One bicycle - chewed a tire and ate the seat and handle bars
- Toys - too numerous, we’ve lost count
- Our patio furniture cushions
- The neighbor’s patio furniture cushions
- Cedar fence planks replaced - he pops them off and uses for chew toys
- Firewood - drags big logs to the yard to chew on
- Inflatable pool
- Numerous leashes & collars
- “Foreign matter” - according to an x-ray tech, Dr. Jessen is on speed dial too
- Shoes - surprisingly not too many, one of JT’s and one of my Mom’s
- Sprinkler system repair, twice
- Many dog beds, including Dolly’s
My Dad suggests we get one of those digital signs like the one that clicks off the national debt. I’m thinking we need to ask for a bail out. Not any crazier than Larry Flynt asking for one. Am I right?
It’s not that we don’t keep an eye on him. All the listed activity was over the course of the past year and a half. If he has a moment on his own, he’s probably chewing something. He’s taught us not to leave him alone much.
Trout is learning how to behave in the house. With minor lapses from time-to-time which include a recent attempt to scarf down a half loaf of cheese bread. (Not to worry, he’s laid back enough to let me reach into his gullet and pull most of it out without resisting.) And stealing the guinea pig’s water dispenser right off her cage. We’re not sure how or why, but it is brightly colored, could easily be mistaken for a chew toy.
Trout loves J.T., especially his toys. We often hear hollering from down the hall, “Trout! Not yours! Mine!” Immediately followed by a flash of black fur running by with a colorful stuffed toy in his mouth.
While he may not be living up to all the promises made when he negotiated for Trout (guess who vacuums up more of the cat sized amounts of fur behind Trout’s kennel, me) Stephan truly loves this dog. When Trout broke into the neighbor’s yard and gorged himself on their dog food requiring a midnight trip to the animal E.R. Stephan pulled out a sleeping bag and slept right next to him in the backyard all night.
Surprisingly, despite all his antics, he is the most lovable dog we’ve ever had. Everything he does is infused with a goofy innocence. He’s the epitome of happy-go-lucky. He’s a champ at the “Find It” game. And he’s provided a lot of laughs. Once while watching “The Real Housewives of the O.C.” I paused the dvr (for Stephan, by-the-way). Trout immediately began to bark at the wife frozen on the screen. (Those wives can be kinda scary.) Another time, Dolly was in the house alerting me to the presence of a pack of squirrels on the back yard fence. I looked outside, sure enough six squirrels. Trout was obliviously laying in the grass, playing with a bug. (I video taped it so my husband could witness his great hunting dog in “action”.)
Trout holding a big chunk of ice in his mouth.
They say once a Lab hits two (or three) you’ll have a great dog. And as we get closer to the two year mark he does seem to be (slowly) mellowing. After stealing toys and counter surfing he is content to lounge around the living room, snoring like a trucker.
The point of this blog entry, while yes, to vent, is primarily a timely cautionary tale. With the recent release of a few dog themed movies comes the inevitable Hollywood induced desire for one of those lovable or well trained pooches from the big screen. Keep in mind, they don’t come with their own trainers or their own big movie budget.
I knew he was a chewer…but had no idea the extent! Thinking we will stick with the Micky D’s Hotel for Dogs toy!
This couldn’t have come at a better time for us. Since Gizmo got out before Christmas and hasn’t come home (he didn’t have his collar on, and no one responded to my MANY signs posted throughout the community), PR’s been asking for a new puppy. One day she said, “Mommy, how about after school we go pick up a new puppy?” Like that’s just something you up and do on a Wednesday afternoon between snack time and supper.
Have I got the dog for you!
Well, your life with Trout is similar to mine with 2 spinone and a maltese. Ricco- who is 7 is my counter surfer. I cannot leave ANYTHING in the kitchen, including BUTTER. The butter is a weekly event. CMJ is always losing toys to Vinny our 5 1/2 year old spin. With showing, hunting, & testing, our dogs they do cost just as much as kiddos. They are worth every penny! Even when we spent $1500 dollars for an ear infection that would not go away. Since I do rescue, God Bless YOU! So, many people will not put up with the puppy and will just throw them away. It is a shame. Keep up the good work!
As I was reading the last comment, another shoe bit the dust. He knows he’s in trouble and is “apologizing” by sitting next to me gazing up with these soulful brown eyes. And he’s already forgiven.
Here’s an idea to recoup your some of your expenses - maybe you should rent Trout out to someone who is trying to convince their significant other to replace some furniture or fix up a room or area. They babysit Trout for a few, let Trout loose to do his thing, and the problem is no longer a want but a need!
That is genius! Rent-a-mutt. We actually do have a plan in the works, we sent his photo into Orvis as part of a contest. We’ll find out in February if he wins a $500 shopping spree! I’ll keep you posted.
We share your pain! While a puppy, our Lab (Latte) chewed many of the same items - BBQ cover, patio furniture, fence, toys, sprinklers, and carpet. But she was especially fascinated with items that belonged to me and promptly ate the tongues off the left shoe of three pairs. Never the right shoe, always the left.
Much to our dismay, Latte also learned to turn the latch on our french style kitchen doors. One evening while we were out she entered through the doors, grabbed every bag of honemoon lingerie I’d recently received at my shower, chewed to her heart’s content, and then strew the remainder across the yard. Fearing she might be ‘caught’ in some of the lingerie during the night, my husband and I crawled around in the pitch black yard searching for unmentionables, and calling out to each other in the dark as we found specific items. The neighbors got quite an earful. I suppose in some respects, Latte is a devoted girlfriend in that many of the destroyed items were not, shall we say, to my liking. When asked about some of the items later, I was glad to have a good excuse for not wearing them!
Last week I started finding small sweaters in the backyard, not J.T.’s. Turns out Trout’s been secretly visiting another neighbor’s yard, (he popped a cedar plank and used it as a doggie door) and helped himself to some clothes set out for Goodwill. This past weekend, Stephan continued the project of replacing old planks to that stretch of fence.
As a ‘Lab Mom’ myself, I loved this piece Eryn! They’ll make you crazy but you can’t help but love ‘em to pieces. Mine only stops wagging her tail when she’s asleep.
Last night Trout rushed the t.v. about 6 times.. barking at the contestants of the Westminster Kennel Club Dog show. He eventually figured out they weren’t real threats.